doc/bugs/cause__58___fake_annex_repo___124___result__58___inflated_numcopies___124___workaround__58___initialize_properly.mdwn

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+<pre>
+
+***** summary
+
+if I run sync, and there is an annex-less git remote in the network
+the annex-less git repo will gain a v5 annex branch
+it knows it can't store binary files
+but all the properly initialized annex repos in the network don't know that
+
+when I run "sync --content", the initialized annex repos think that the uninitialized repo contains the binary files.
+
+I suspect this results in inaccurate "copies" count
+I know it results in an inaccurate "list files' location" graph
+and also inaccurate "whereis" readout
+
+***** reproduction
+
+repo "Alpha" is a git-annex repo with file "music"
+repo "Zeta" is a git repo cloned from Alpha
+
+@Alpha:
+git annex sync --content
+git annex list
+[shows music present on Zeta]
+git annex whereis
+[shows music present on Zeta]
+
+@Zeta
+git annex list
+[shows nothing]
+git annex whereis
+[shows music present on Zeta]
+
+***** proving that the problem is "sync --content"
+
+Hypothesis:
+
+maybe the issue is that I cloned the repo rather than creating it normally,
+leaving it in a half-annexed state?
+
+Experiment:
+
+tested by creating an independent git repo and then adding it as a remote to Alpha.
+
+then ran sync --content
+
+Result:
+
+no different than before.
+
+Conclusion:
+
+The problem lies with 
+git-annex sync --content
+
+***** ramifications
+
+It would appear this error can cause data loss due to a false numcopies count.
+
+Yet GitHub is supposed to work. So this error should've already been noticed. Contradiction detected.
+
+Positivity: I am planning on becoming a git-annex evangelist as part of a larger project. Emacs offers ergonomic control via magit and a dired plugin.
+
+***** environment
+
+git-annex version: 6.20170301-ga9e1e17d40
+build flags: Assistant Webapp Pairing Testsuite S3(multipartupload)(storageclasses) WebDAV Inotify DBus DesktopNotify ConcurrentOutput TorrentParser MagicMime Feeds Quvi
+key/value backends: SHA256E SHA256 SHA512E SHA512 SHA224E SHA224 SHA384E SHA384 SHA3_256E SHA3_256 SHA3_512E SHA3_512 SHA3_224E SHA3_224 SHA3_384E SHA3_384 SKEIN256E SKEIN256 SKEIN512E SKEIN512 SHA1E SHA1 MD5E MD5 WORM URL
+remote types: git gcrypt p2p S3 bup directory rsync web bittorrent webdav tahoe glacier ddar hook external
+local repository version: unknown
+supported repository versions: 3 5 6
+upgrade supported from repository versions: 0 1 2 3 4 5
+operating system: linux x86_64
+
+</pre>